Online method for training vehicle drivers and determining hazard detection proficiency

• US 9,583,017 B2
• Filed: 04/01/2015
• Issued: 02/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/06/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company (State Farm)
• Original Assignee: State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company (State Farm)
• Inventors: Nepomuceno, John Adrian
• Primary Examiner(s): Robinson, Kito R
• Application Number:
  US14/676,491
• Publication Number:
  US 20150206449A1
• Time in Patent Office: 699 Days
• Field of Search: 705/4
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A63G 31/16 creating illusions of travel
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0208 Trade or exchange of goods or services in exchange for incentives or rewards
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0271 Personalized advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/20 Education
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/14 Traffic procedures, e.g. traffic regulations
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/167 Control of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 9/02 for teaching control of vehicles or other craft
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 9/04 for teaching control of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 9/05 the view from a vehicle being simulated G09B9/052, G09B9/058 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 9/052 characterised by provision for recording or measuring trainee's performance devices for psychotechnics, e.g. for vehicle drivers A61B5/16, A61B5/18

Abstract

A system for determining vehicle driver hazard detection proficiency and calculating insurance discounts, the system comprising: an Internet device that presents to an Internet user a visual presentation of a continuous drive through a driving environment comprising at least two hazard modules, wherein each hazard module presents to the Internet user at least one driving scenario that comprises at least one hazard; an Internet device that records user viewing locations within the visual presentation, the user viewing locations corresponding to locations within the visual presentation that are viewed by the user during the visual presentation of the continuous drive; a computer analytics device comprising an algorithm that compares the recorded user viewing locations with defined locations of hazards within the visual presentation of the continuous drive, and determines a hazard detection proficiency of the user based at least on the comparison; a computer memory device comprising at least one minimum hazard detection proficiency criteria corresponding to an insurance discount; and a computer analytics device that compares the determined hazard detection proficiency of the user with the minimum hazard detection proficiency criteria and determines whether to award the insurance discount to the user.

Claims

1. A system for training vehicle drivers to detect hazards, the system comprising:

a processor comprising a website stored in memory associated with the processor, an internet device comprising a display device and a physical user interface;

an internet connection between the processor and the internet device;

wherein the processor communicates the website to the internet device over the internet connection and is configured to;

visually present to a driver via the display device a view of a continuous drive through a driving environment including a plurality of vehicle-type hazards that automatically switch between (a) a stationary state in which an image of a vehicle is stationary but indicates a potential hazard to (b) a moving state in which the image of the vehicle is moving;

receive physical interactions between the driver and the physical user interface via the internet connection, wherein the physical user interface detects where the driver is looking within the visual presentation, including indications the driver is looking at a mirror, checking a blind spot and a rapid look over the driver'"'"'s shoulder to either side;

detect and score a driver response to each vehicle-type hazard by distinguishing between whether, for a particular displayed vehicle, the driver (a) selects, via the physical user interface, the image of the vehicle during the stationary state, wherein the driver is awarded a first score, (b) selects, via the physical user interface, the image of the vehicle during the moving state, wherein the driver is awarded a second score lower than the first score, or (c) fails to select, via the physical user interface, the image of the vehicle in either the stationary state or the moving state;

calculate a hazard detection proficiency for the driver based on the results of the detecting and scoring of the driver responses to the vehicle-type hazards; and

record the hazard detection proficiency calculated for the driver and associate the recorded proficiency with actual driving data to identify direct correlations between correctly identified hazards and actual safe driving, wherein the system enhances hazard identification.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to present to the driver at least two hazard modules, wherein each hazard module presents at least one driving scenario that comprises different types of hazards, wherein the plurality of hazard modules are presented in a different sequential order at different times.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein visually presenting comprises presenting at least one driving environment selected from:

neighborhood,

beyond your neighborhood,

downtown, and

highway.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to determine whether the driver detects a hazard sufficiently in advance of a point of impact.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein determining the driver'"'"'s hazard detection proficiency comprises evaluating whether the driver has detected a minimum percentage of the total number of hazards in the visual presentation.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to review the continuous drive by a process including:

replaying the visual presentation;

indicating hazards that the driver detected during the replay of the visual presentation; and

indicating hazards that the driver failed to detect during the replay of the visual presentation.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein visually presenting comprises at least two continuous drives each through different driving environments, wherein determining the driver'"'"'s hazard detection proficiency comprises determining whether the driver has detected a minimum percentage of hazards in each of the at least two continuous drives.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein detecting where the driver is looking within the visual presentation comprises detecting when the user is looking at a driver side location, a passenger side location, or a rear view mirror location.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein detecting where the driver is looking within the visual presentation comprises detecting that the driver pans to certain areas on the left or right side of the screen, which panning is recorded as looking over the left or right shoulder of the driver, respectively.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein detecting where the driver is looking within the visual presentation comprises detecting precautionary looks by the driver to anticipate possible hazards.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to randomly present a plurality of hazard modules corresponding to a plurality of different driving conditions selected from the group consisting of rain, dry, snow, icy, night-time, daylight, windy, and foggy.

12. A system for training vehicle drivers to detect hazards, the system comprising:

a processor comprising a website stored in memory associated with the processor, an internet device comprising a display device and a physical user interface;

an internet connection between the processor and the internet device;

wherein the processor communicates the website to the internet device over the internet connection and is configured to;

visually present to a driver via the display device a view of a continuous drive through a driving environment including a plurality of hazards that automatically switch between (a) a stationary state in which an image of the hazard is stationary but indicates a potential hazard to (b) a moving state in which the image of the hazard is moving;

receive physical interactions from the driver via the physical user interface, wherein the processor is further configured to detect where the driver is looking within the visual presentation, wherein the physical user interface detects where the driver is looking within the visual presentation, including indications the driver is looking at a mirror, checking a blind spot and a rapid look over the driver'"'"'s shoulder to either side;

detect and score a driver response to each hazard by distinguishing between whether, for a particular displayed hazard, the driver (a) selects, via the physical user interface, the image of the hazard during the stationary state, wherein the driver is awarded a first score, (b) selects, via the physical user interface, the image of the hazard during the moving state, wherein the driver is awarded a second score lower than the first score, or (c) fails to select, via the physical user interface, the image of the hazard in either the stationary state or the moving state;

calculate a hazard detection proficiency for the driver based on the results of the detecting and scoring of the driver responses to the hazards; and

record the hazard detection proficiency calculated for the driver and associate the recorded proficiency with actual driving data to identify direct correlations between correctly identified hazards and actual safe driving, wherein the system enhances hazard identification.